The spokesman for Iran's judiciary disclosed that a verdict has already been issued in the espionage trial of jailed Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian, but that the details have not yet been disclosed.
Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejehi announced the punishment in a statement on the semiofficial Iranian Student's News Agency, said Fox News.
"It is a prison sentence,'' Ejehi said. "The ruling may be appealed by Rezaian or his lawyer in the next 20 days.''
But Rezaian's lawyer, Leila Ahsan, told The Associated Press she had not been informed of the verdict—let alone the details of the sentence.
"I have no information about details of the verdict. We were expecting the verdict some three months ago,'' said Ahsan.
The Washington Post bureau chief in Tehran was detained in July 2014 and languished in jail for over a year despite an international outcry.
With the apparent verdict, Rezaian's family blasted the Iranian government and called the anonymous ruling "another sad chapter in his 14-month illegal imprisonment and opaque trial process,'' CNN reported.
"The lack of information follows an unconscionable pattern by Iranian authorities of silence, obfuscation, delay and total lack of adherence to international law, as well as Iranian law.''
The Post, which has vigorously denied the accusations against its correspondent, described the recent development a "sham'' and a "travesty.''
"What we're seeing unfolding here is a sham,'' Doug Jehl, the Post foreign editor, said on CNN's "Reliable Sources.''
"For Iran to say that there's been a verdict but it's not final simply suggests, again, that this is not a matter for the courts, it's a matter that's being decided in the political spheres in Iran,'' he said.
"This vague and puzzling statement by the government of Iran only adds to the injustice that has surrounded Jason's case since his arrest 15 months ago,'' noted Marty Baron, the paper's top editor.
The U.S. State Department said they have no information on the apparent ruling, and is "monitoring the situation closely.''
"We continue to call for all charges against Jason to be dropped and for him to be immediately released,'' said John Kirby, spokesman for the U.S. State Department.
Iran's state media, citing the indictment, have said Rezaian collected information on Iranian and foreign individuals and companies, circumventing sanctions, and passed them on to the U.S. government. Iranian state TV has repeatedly called Rezaian an "American spy," Fox News reported.
Rezaian's trial started in May under what is called a "cloak of secrecy.'' It went on for four closed-door court hearings at Tehran's Revolutionary Court over the past months. Last month, he was convicted of spying and other charges.
